In its place is a gaping hole surrounded by angry red scars. The Afghan Taliban hacked off her nose, and both her ears, with a knife for running away from her husband's house. A husband who, she says, was abusive and treated her like a slave.

Better days

Bibi Aisha is now in the United States, in California, for reconstructive surgery. She is consulting with doctors at the Grossman Burn Center in West Hills, California, run by non-profit group that is paying for her medical treatment, education and personal needs throughout process.

First, her doctors will determine the scope of her injuries, and then over a long period of time, perform a number of reconstructive procedures and surgeries.

Controversy

Her picture on the cover of TIME magazinehas stirred controversy, not only because of the jarring photograph, but also because of the story's headline, which reads: "What Happens if We Leave Afghanistan." The use of the conditional word "if" and not "when" is starkly different from the language used by Obama administration officials, who have said U.S. forces will begin a "drawdown" from Afghanistan next year.

The story has also put a spotlight on the moral aspect of the U.S. presence in Afghanistan, raising questions about America's duty to protect human rights. While some say the U.S. should stay, others argue the presence of tens of thousands of U.S. forces is in effect an occupying force that impinges on the freedom of Afghans.

Rights groups' warning

But women's rights groups say Bibi Aisha's case is a very real warning of the atrocities that could happen without a foreign presence in Afghanistan. Women regularly face domestic violence and abuse in the male-dominated society, and the presence of the Taliban reinforces this behavior, according to Shinkai Karokhail, a member of the Afghan parliament.

(Click here to listen to Kate's interview with Shinkai Karokhail)

"When there is no law enforcement, when there is no strong government in some places and the presence of Taliban and no accountability for the situation, so definitely they will do the worst to a woman," said Karokhail.

War porn?

The editors at TIMEmagazine are being taken to task by some critics who have gone so far as to call Bibi Aisha's cover photo "war porn," emotionally manipulative and exploitive.

Even the U.S. Congress has reacted to the story. The speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, recoiled when confronted with the magazine cover during a television interview. Military historian Richard Kohn from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill says the idea of human rights resonates strongly among the American public.

(Click here to listen to Kate's interview with Richard Kohn)

"It goes all the way back to the founding of the United States, and when an indigenous culture or a hostile group like the Taliban threatens the United States' security, it seems to me that the moral issues of the treatment of their peoples essentially magnifies the issues and to some extent simplifies the issues for the American people," said Kohn.

Not a priority

Still, Kohn believes that realistically, the situation in Afghanistan is not a top priority for Americans.

"Most Americans are focused today on domestic issues and particularly economic issues," he said. "So, the debate I think over Afghanistan and when and how the United States should extract itself is a secondary or a tertiary debate"

Kohn adds the Obama administration will look first and foremost to American national security, not necessarily Afghan human rights.

Furthermore, Bibi Aisha was mutilated last year, a time when tens of thousands of international forces were on the ground in Afghanistan – raising the question that if foreign troops could not prevent her attack then, will they ever be able to in the future?

Manned deep space missions are still a long way off, but space agencies are already testing procedures, equipment and human stamina for operations in extreme environment conditions. Small groups of astronauts take turns in spending days in an underwater lab, off Florida’s southern coast, simulating future missions to some remote world. VOA’s George Putic reports.

Video

Manned deep space missions are still a long way off, but space agencies are already testing procedures, equipment and human stamina for operations in extreme environment conditions. Small groups of astronauts take turns in spending days in an underwater lab, off Florida’s southern coast, simulating future missions to some remote world. VOA’s George Putic reports.

Video

Fifty years ago, lawmakers approved, and U.S. President Lyndon Johnson signed, the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The measure outlawed racial discrimination in voting, giving millions of blacks in many parts of the southern United States federal enforcement of the right to vote. Correspondent Chris Simkins introduces us to some civil rights leaders who were on the front lines in the struggle for voting rights.

Video

Billions of dollars of so-called ‘dirty money’ from the proceeds of crime - especially from Russia - are being laundered through the London property market, according to anti-corruption activists. As Henry Ridgwell reports from the British capital, the government has pledged to crack down on the practice.

Video

Ottawa, Illinois, is the hometown of W.D. Boyce, who founded the Boy Scouts of America in 1910. In Ottawa, where Scouting remains an important part of the legacy of the community, the end of the organization's ban on openly gay adult leaders was seen as inevitable. VOA's Kane Farabaugh reports.

Video

Artificial limbs, including the most complex of them – the human hand – are getting more life-like and useful due to constant advances in tiny hydraulic, pneumatic and electric motors called actuators. But now, as VOA’s George Putic reports, scientists in Germany say the future of the prosthetic hand may lie not in motors but in wires that can ‘remember’ their shape.

Video

A British pro-democracy group has accused Russia of abusing the global law enforcement agency Interpol by requesting the arrest and extradition of political opponents. A new report by the group notes such requests can mean the accused are unable to travel and are often unable to open bank accounts. VOA's Henry Ridgwell reports.

Video

Talks on a major new trade agreement among 12 Pacific Rim nations are said to be nearing completion in Hawaii. Some trade experts say the "positive atmosphere" at the discussions could mean a deal is within reach, but there is still hard bargaining to be done over many issues and products, including U.S. drugs and Japanese rice. VOA's Jim Randle reports.

Video

Earth is in the midst of its sixth mass extinction. The last such event was caused by an asteroid 66 million years ago. It killed off the dinosaurs and practically everything else. So scientists are in a race against time to classify the estimated 11 million species alive today. So far only 2 million are described by science, and researchers are worried many will disappear before they even have a name. VOA’s Rosanne Skirble reports.

Video

Scientists have long been trying to develop an effective protection and cure for malaria - one of the deadliest diseases that affects people in tropical areas, especially children. As the World Health Organization announces plans to begin clinical trials of a promising new vaccine, scientists in South Africa report that they too are at an important threshold. George Putic reports, they are testing a compound that could be a single-dose cure for malaria.

Video

The latest issue of 'New York' magazine features 35 women who say they were drugged and raped by film and television celebrity Bill Cosby. The women are aged from 44 to 80 and come from different walks of life and races. The magazine interviewed each of them separately, but Zlatica Hoke reports their stories are similar.

Video

The United States is promising not to give up its fight against what Secretary of State John Kerry calls the “scourge” of modern slavery. Officials released the country’s annual human trafficking report Monday – a report that’s being met with some criticism. VOA’s National Security correspondent Jeff Seldin has more from the State Department.

Video

Abandoned more than 50 years ago, the underground streetcar station in Washington D.C.’s historic DuPont Circle district is about to be reborn. The plan calls for turning the spacious underground platforms - once meant to be a transportation hub, - into a unique space for art exhibitions, presentations, concerts and even a film set. Roman Mamonov has more from beneath the streets of the U.S. capital. Joy Wagner narrates his report.

Video

Greece has replaced Italy as the main gateway for migrants into Europe, with more than 100,000 arrivals in the first six months of 2015. Many want to move further into Europe and escape Greece’s economic crisis, but they face widespread dangers on the journey overland through the Balkans. VOA's Henry Ridgwell reports.

Video

After the closure of a major rubbish dump a week ago, the streets of Beirut are filling up with trash. Having failed to draw up a plan B, politicians are struggling to deal with the problem. John Owens has more for VOA from Beirut.

Video

A U.N. climate conference in December aims to produce an ambitious agreement to fight heat-trapping greenhouse gases. But many local governments are not waiting, and have drafted their own climate action plans. That’s the case with Paris — which is getting special attention, since it’s hosting the climate summit. Lisa Bryant takes a look for VOA at the transformation of the French capital into an eco-city.